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Sand-colored wrapper and not very veiny. It has a very large and elaborate silver, white, and blue band.

Dark chocolate wrapper with some veins. Very colorful band with mostly blacks and reds.

The wrapper color is identical to the Man O’ War. The band is similar in design to the Virtue and MOW, except it is gold, brown, and white in color.

Construction

Cigar has a single cap that looks crooked. One soft spot towards the middle of the cigar. Very easy draw on pre-light. It was a very smoky cigar that produced a bright white ash.

Single cap which looks lighter in color than the rest of the wrapper. Very firm - no soft spots. The draw had some resistance. The ash was very firm and light grey.

Single cap and very firm cigar with no soft spots. Some resistance in the pre-light draw. It produced a charcoal grey ash which was about an inch long. The Ruination generated more smoke as it reached the three-quarter mark of the cigar.

Flavors and Aromas

Wrapper has a sweet scent with hints of hay; the foot smells mostly like green hay. The tongue had a slight pepper taste. Initially, lots of walnuts with a slight pepper on the retrohale. Towards the middle, a more nutty flavor with a very creamy smoke which continued until the end of the cigar.

The wrapper has a chocolaty smell, while the foot features a grass scent. The pre-light draw has a coffee note along with some chocolate. There was a lot more pepper in the tongue. Got a nutty taste initially with some sweetness. About a third into the cigar, nutty flavors became more dominant with continuous sweetness. The finish was long mostly lingering in the roof of the mouth.

The wrapper had a barnyard smell while the foot featured more like a dry hay aroma. The pre-light draw was sweet and fruity like raisins. Initially, the cigar had wood (oak) and leather notes. After an inch, it became more nutty with some hints of pepper. Halfway, through the cigar, a coffee flavor was noted along with nuts. The retrohale continued to be peppery. The cigar ended with the nutty flavors as the dominant flavor. The finish was long and felt pretty much over the entire mouth.

Value

About $8.00 per cigar. This is a bit high for a robusto although it is quite an enjoyable smoke.Check prices online

This is the most expensive of the three cigars with a price tag of $10.00 per stick. It is a very flavorful cigar, but I am not sure if it commands that price tag.Check prices online

Overall Impression

The Virtue is a good cigar if you are looking for a mild smoke. This would be an ideal morning cigar especially when paired with a cup of coffee. I was not too fond of the price, but it is a good quality product.

I definitely enjoyed this one more than the Virtue; great balance between the predominant flavors and the sweetness behind them. Great after dinner cigar that will pair well with a nice digestive - a glass of whisky or champagne.

This was the best of the three cigars. It had a lot more spice than the Man O’ War with other flavors that produced a very balanced smoke. It is expensive, so this would not be what I consider a daily cigar; but it is certainly very enjoyable.

Conclusion: These are all very good cigars, and AJ Fernandez has a winner with all three. The order I would rank them would be: 1) Ruination, 2) Man O’ War, 3) Virtue. All three do carry a high price tag, but you do get very good cigars. I would recommend these three cigars as they have good flavors, and they are all very well constructed. Doing the flight allowed me to further enjoy the quality of Ecuadorian grown wrapper leaves.